ANTH 200 A01: Cultural & Social Anthropology (CRN20095)

Department of Anthropology
University of Victoria
Spring 2020
Tuesday: 2:30-4:20
Room: CLE A127

Territorial Acknowledgement
The Department of Anthropology acknowledge with respect the Lekwungen peoples on whose traditional
territory the University of Victoria stands and the Songhees, Esquimalt and WSÁNEĆ peoples whose
historical relationships with the land continue to this day.

Instructor: Dr. Mélissa Gauthier Tutorial Instructor: Mark McIntyre

Department of Anthropology Department of Anthropology
Office: Cornett B240 Office: Cornett B217
Office hours: Wednesday 1:30-2:15 Office Hours: by appointment
email: meligau@uvic.ca email: anth200tutorial@uvic.ca
Telephone: 250-721-6254
Tutorials: Tutorials start the week of January 13th. SECTION DAY TIME ROOM
Please ensure that you are registered in both the lecture T01 W 12:30-2:20 ELL 162
(ANTH 200 A01) and one of the four tutorial sections.
If you are not registered in both the lecture and a T02 W 3:30-5:20 CLE C109
tutorial section, you will be dropped from the course. T03 R 2:30-4:20 CLE A314
T04 F 12:30-2:20 COR B107
Course Description
This course provides students with an overview of social and cultural anthropology – its origins, its
distinctive methods and concepts, and its place in the contemporary world. In this course, you will learn
how to think about contemporary events from an anthropological perspective and how to better understand
yourself in relation to others. You will also learn to appreciate the diversity of topics that contemporary
socio-cultural anthropology explores and the extent to which it can help you better understand a world
where peoples and societies are increasingly interconnected.
Course & Program Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course students should:
 have a greater degree of familiarity with the field of socio-cultural anthropology & be conversant
with some of the key concepts, theoretical orientations, & methods used by anthropologists;
 understand the historical developments that have shaped the subfield of sociocultural anthropology;
 get a better sense of what the “comparative method” is;
 learn to challenge their cultural biases and ethnocentric assumptions;
 demonstrate greater awareness of the cultural & social bases of human prejudice & discrimination;
 learn to think about contemporary events from an anthropological perspective & apply
anthropological theories & concepts to real-world problems;
 use anthropological concepts and gain skills for critically reading & visually analyzing the world
around us;
 understand the ethical standards that anthropologists uphold.
Skills Development
Because this is an introductory course, it will offer the opportunity to exercise a wide variety of skills that
are crucial in students’ academic and professional careers. These include critical reading, analytical
thinking, intercultural communication and the ability to undertake effective secondary research using online
and traditional research sources. In addition, the course will provide students with a supportive environment
to develop effective communication skills.

Course Requirements & Grading Standards

The course format will be lectures, discussion and video screenings. The most important work in this course
is to be prepared for each class; this means that students are expected to have completed the assigned
readings before each lecture/tutorial and to participate in class discussions. The grading of the course will
be as follows:

REQUIREMENT DATE POINTS

Midterm Exam Tuesday, February 25th 30

Final Exam TBA (April 6th-24th) 35

Fieldtrip Journal Entry Tuesday March 31st 10

Reading Quizzes (5x 2pt) See Course Schedule 10

Participation All semester 15

Total: 100

Notes on Exams
The two in-class exams will be based on readings, lectures, discussions and videos and will be a mixture of
multiple choice, matching and short essay questions. The final exam will be scheduled during the
examinations period. The date will be posted when available. Students will not be permitted to write the
final exam on an alternate date to accommodate travel plans.
Missed Exams
Make-up exams will only be provided for students who miss the exam due to illness or other emergency
situation or for religious or spiritual observances (as per University Policy). Proper documentation is
required (e.g. medical note). Please contact me as soon as possible if an exam date conflicts with a religious
or spiritual observance day. If you miss the exam for a valid medical or other emergency situation, please
contact me as soon as possible to schedule a make-up exam.

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Course Schedule

DATE LECTURE (L) TUTORIAL (T) READINGS

Jan. 7 Introduction

Jan. 14 The Story of Beauty Is In The Eye Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 1: 1-28
Anthropology of the Beholder

Jan. 21 Theory in An Anticolonial Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 2: 29-52

Anthropology History of BC Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 6: 115-138

Jan. 28 Doing Anthropology Ethics & Practice Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 3: 53-71 RQ #1
Chagnon 2012
Fluehr-Lobban 2004

Feb. 4 Making a Living A Lesson in Coast Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 4: 73-89
Salish Economics Gowdy 1999

Feb. 11 Kinship & The What’s Love Got to Do Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 5: 91-113 RQ #2
Social Order With It? Edwards 2015
**Midterm Review**

Feb. 18 Reading Break (Feb. 17-Feb. – Feb. 21)

Feb. 25 Midterm Exam CODE: Debugging No Readings

the Gender Gap

Mar. 3 Gender & Social Content Analysis & Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 8: 163-183 RQ #3
Expectations Gender Stereotypes Mukhopadhyay 2009
Karkazis & Davis 2015

Mar. 10 The Politics of What’s in a Name? Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 10: 211-235 RQ #4
Culture Cogos et al. 2017
Horne 2012

Mar. 17 Fieldtrip to PKOLS No Tutorials No Readings

Mar. 24 Race, Science & Unpuzzling Inequality Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 9: 185-210 RQ # 5
Human Diversity Abel 2018

Mar. 31 Cultural Change & Cooking across Kelly & Smillie: Ch. 11: 237-264 Fieldtrip
Globalization Borders Journal
Entry

This course schedule is subject to change

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Course Readings
There is one required textbook for this course, which is available at the university bookstore:
Kenny, Michael and Kirsten Smillie. 2017. Stories of Culture and Place: An Introduction to
Anthropology. Second Edition. North York: University of Toronto Press.

The other required readings consist of articles and book chapters that will be available electronically in our
CourseSpaces course site:
Abel, Sarah. 2018. Of African Descent? Blackness and the Concept of Origins in Cultural
Perspectives. Genealogy 2 (1): 11.

Chagnon, A. Napoleon. 2012. "Doing Fieldwork among the Yanomamo." In: One World, Many
Cultures, edited by Stuart Hirschberg and Terry Hirschberg, 298-312. 8th ed. Boston: Pearson
Longman.

Cogos, Sarah, Marie Roué, and Samuel Roturier. 2017. Sami Place Names and Maps: Transmitting
Kowledge of a Cultural Landscape in Contemporary Contexts. Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine
Research 49 (1): 43-51.

Edwards, Jeanette. 2015. “Donor Conception and (Dis)closure in the UK: Siblingship, Friendship
and Kinship.” Sociologus 65 (1): 101–122.

Fluehr-Lobban, Carolyn. 2004. “Darkness in El Dorado: Research Ethics, Then and Now.” In: Ethics
and the Profession of Anthropology: Dialogue for an Ethically Conscious Practice, edited by
Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban, 85-106. 2nd ed. Walnut Creek: Altamira Press.

Gowdy John 1999. “Hunter-Gatherers and the Mythology of the Market”:391-398, in The Cambridge
Encyclopedia of Hunter-Gatherers, Richard B. Lee and Richard Daly (eds.), Cambridge University
Press.

Horne Jack. 2012. WSANEC: Emerging Land or Emerging People. The Arbutus Review 3(2):6-19.

Karkazis, Katrina and Georgiann Davis. 2015. “Intersex: Socio-Cultural Perspectives.” In The
International Encyclopedia of Human Sexuality, edited by Patricia Whelehan and Anne Bolin, 1-4.
Malden, Oxford: John Wiley & Sons.

Miner, Horace. 1956. Body Ritual Among the nacirema. American Anthropologist 58 (3): 503-507.

Mukhopaddhyay, Carol. 2009. “How Exportable are Western Theories of Gendered Science? A
Cautionary Word.” In Women and Science in India: A Reader, edited by Neelam Kumar, 137-177.
Oxford University Press.

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Class Etiquette & Appropriate Use of Technology Policy
Students are requested to arrive at class on time. All cell phones, iPods, etc. must be turned off or put on
silent mode upon entering the classroom. Text messaging is only allowed during the break. Laptops are
allowed to be used for taking notes during class. Please keep in mind that surfing the web or checking
and/or composing e-mails during class is a source of unwanted distraction both for me as an instructor and
for your peers.
Attendance and absences
Attending class is an important part of the learning process in this course. Attendance exposes you to
material not in the readings, to your classmates’ insights and helps clarify material that can lead to better
performance in the course. Class attendance will be taken regularly and reviewed by the instructor. Your
participation grade will take into account your attendance record and your participation in discussion. Please
note: If you miss a class for any reason, you are responsible for getting notes from another student.
Email Policy
In your email subject, please include the following information: ANTH 200 student. I will attempt to
respond to emails in a timely fashion, although depending on my schedule or the nature of the request,
delays may occur. Therefore, be prepared to wait up to 48 hours for a response during the week. Email will
only be checked sporadically on weekends. Therefore, you should expect that emails sent over the weekend
may not be answered until Monday at the earliest. If you have any questions or concerns with the course or
your assignments, please feel free to meet me during office hours or by appointment. If you would like to
discuss your grade, you must come to see me in person.

Equity & Accessibility Statement

The University of Victoria is committed to promoting, providing, and protecting a positive, supportive and
safe learning and working environment for all its members" (Senate Resolution, January 13, 1999). As part
of our commitment to equity, the Department of Anthropology has established an Equity Committee. If you
have concerns regarding equity issues in the classroom, you may contact a member of the Equity
Committee. The Department Secretary can provide you with the names of the current members of this
committee. Students with diverse learning styles and needs are welcome in this course. In particular, if you
have a disability/health consideration that may require accommodations, please feel free to approach me
and/or the Centre for Accessible Learning (CAL) as soon as possible. CAL staff are available by
appointment to assess specific needs, provide referrals and arrange appropriate accommodations. The
sooner you let us know your needs the quicker we can assist you in achieving your learning goals in this
course.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is intellectual honesty and responsibility for academic work that you submit or work on
with others. Violations of academic integrity can take a number of forms, including plagiarism, multiple
submission and cheating on work, tests and examinations. It is important for you to be familiar with the
university policies on academic integrity as well as the procedures and consequences that may follow if you
are accused of academic misconduct. For an explanation of what constitutes academic misconduct and how
it is treated within the university, students are advised to read the Policy on Academic Integrity, available
online at: https://web.uvic.ca/calendar2019-09/undergrad/info/regulations/academic-integrity.html

Statement on Peer Editing

UVic’s Policy on Academic Integrity specifies that the use of an editor, whether paid or unpaid, is
prohibited unless the instructor grants explicit written authorization. The Department of Anthropology

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recognizes that peer editing is an important component of student learning, academic scholarship, and
effective communication. We encourage undergraduate and graduate students in our courses to ask other
students to read and comment on the clarity of their written work. There are benefits to getting feedback
from your peers, and to rethinking and clarifying your ideas as you re-write and revise your work. Peer
editing includes having the unpaid assistance of another student to read your document and provide
comments on its content, grammar, and style. Peer editing does not include having a professional paid editor
read and revise your work. Students who require accommodation should consult with their course
instructor.

Course Experience Survey (CES)

I value your feedback on this course. Towards the end of term you will have the opportunity to complete a
confidential course experience survey (CES) regarding your learning experience. The survey is vital to
providing feedback to me regarding the course and my teaching, as well as to help the department improve
the overall program for students in the future. When it is time for you to complete the survey, you will
receive an email inviting you to do so. If you do not receive an email invitation, you can go directly to
http://ces.uvic.ca. You will need to use your UVic NetLink ID to access the survey, which can be done on
your laptop, tablet or mobile device.